The Big Bang Theory – Recap & Review – The Adhesive Duck Deficiency

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The Big Bang Theory
The Adhesive Duck Deficiency

Original Air Date: Nov 16, 2009

Theresa – Staff Writer
Theresa@thetwocentscorp.com

This one’s for you, Penny/ Sheldon lovers! Put it in your captain’s log: on Stardate 63345.3, Sheldon not only came as dashingly as possible to Penny’s rescue, but he even drove her to the hospital and sang to her! And don’t tell Leonard, but he got a taboo peek and more at Penny! So how did this surreality come to be?

While trying to order very particular portions of Thai food, Sheldon hears Penny scream for help. He runs over  – knocking three times before entering each door, of course – and finds Penny in her bathtub, where she’s fallen and dislocated her shoulder. Sheldon is the only one around because the other guys have gone camping for the rather timely reason of watching the Leonid meteor shower. After lecturing her on the importance of whimsical adhesive ducks-with-umbrellas to prevent tub slips, he chivalrously comes to her aid, because Southern boy Sheldon Cooper cannot abandon a damsel in distress.

They try to get Penny dressed, which is a comedy of errors. First, Sheldon can’t find any outfit they agree matches. Then, since he has to keep his eyes closed while dressing her, he ends up grabbing at … not her arm. Turns out he didn’t keep them closed the *whole* time, however, because he caught the fact that Penny has a Chinese tattoo on her butt. As tends to happen with tattoos you don’t actually know the language of, Penny has always thought it said “courage” until Sheldon informs her it means “soup”. But we’re missing the important point here: Sheldon was checking out Penny’s butt!

Sheldon makes the courageous (soupageous?) drive to the hospital, which it really is in Penny’s car since that “Check Engine” light is STILL on. They settle in to fill out Penny’s medical history form – Cause of Accident: Lack of Adhesive Ducks; Skin Aberrations: Soup Tattoo. Penny asks if Sheldon can be a bit more comforting, and man, if you thought Sheldon’s smile was creepy, you NEED to see his comfort face. It’s something akin to a cross-eyed jester with no muscle control who’s been knocked in the head with a hammer.

Sheldon gets drugged-up Penny home, where she jokes about Sheldon getting her into bed, and finally gets her chance at some “Soft Kitty” revenge! She acts exactly like sick whiny Sheldon, and makes him sit on the bed and sing with her in a harmonious round while he chokes back his horror. I was the giddiest girl in the world at the end of this scene.

Lest you think the rest of the gang is up to nothing, Leonard, Raj, and Howard are having their own little, uh, trip. Howard hits on some 50-year-old schoolteachers a few campsites over, and they send him away with some cookies until they can meet up later. However, these are “special” cookies, and soon the boys are in an absolutely hilarious psychedelic haze.

Raj totally steals this one: he tries to make the world stop spinning so fast by digging his heels into it, makes fun of dumb American accents, and talks about becoming the tyrannical king of the rabbits. Meanwhile, Leonard wishes his name was Angelo, and Howard reveals he lost his virginity to his cousin. After the trippiness comes the ravenous hunger, and the boys claw their way through their pudding supply before thankfully finding some brisket Howard’s mom left him as a surprise. Oh, and they totally miss the meteor shower.

Whew! Sorry for the long recap, but this episode just nailed it the whole way through – it’s easily my favorite of the season, and definitely in the top 5 overall. The dialogue was absolutely killer! (Don’t be fooled by the lack of quotes here, it was just so hard to pick out one-liners when every exchange had me rolling with laughter!) And I think it’s great when a show can nonchalantly bring out continuity, like Penny’s horrible auto maintenance and the mirror of her behavior to sick Sheldon’s (“Injured and drugged is a kind of sick!”). BBT cast and crew, I salute you. Readers, let me know your favorite moments in the comments!

Best Lines:
Sheldon: In the mid-18^th century, King Rama the IV of Siam divided a huge empire amongst the colonial powers of Europe in order to preserve his throne. Surely you, his cultural descendant, can handle pad thai and dumplings! (hears Penny scream) I need to go, but you keep in mind that my sharply worded comments on Yelp.com recently took down a local muffin store.

Raj: (laughing) Because of your American accent, everything you say sounds stupid! “Stars are pretty, aren’t they?”

Leonard: I hate my name… it has “nerd” in it!